Metals and Melting Practices:

Metal melting is the procedure of producing a liquid metal of the needed composition at the needed rate, and along required amount of superheat when incurring the minimal cost. This is one of the most significant foundry practices, as it decides the quality of the casting. There are number of methods available for melting foundry alloys such like pit furnace, rotary furnace, open hearth furnace, cupola furnace, etc. The choice of the furnace depends on many factors, primary among them are the compositional range of the material to be melted, the fuel or energy utilized to melt the charge, the degree of refining and control over the process and type and size of the melting unit.

Objectives

After learning this unit, you must be able to

• know the several types of furnaces used for melting the metal,
• know the details of the operations carried out when melting any metals, and
• appreciate the significance of other melting practice along the melting of metals in the furnaces.